Not-so-faint praise

"I hope that Andrew Cuomo serves the state as senator and as governor -- whichever one he would pick in the future. I think he's that great an elected official."

New York Gov. David Paterson, who says he passed over the state's attorney general in appointing a U.S. senator to succeed Hillary Clinton because it would have burdened him with another key vacancy to fill. Cuomo is considered a leading candidate for governor, should Paterson falter.